Section for steam and hot-water furnaces



Jim. 25, 1921.,

C. PHELPS SECTION FOR STEAM AND HOT WATER FURNACES Filed August 10..1922

Patented Jan. 25, 1927.

, UNITED STATES CHARLES PHELPS, F OSKALOOSA, IOWA.

SECTION FOR STEAM AND HOT-WATER FURNACES.

Application. filed August 10,

My invention relates to improvements in hot water furnaces and steamboilers, such as used for heating buildings. The invention consistsprimarily in a single section of a furnace, being one of a number in thesame furnace, which are exactly alike and arranged to be bolted andsecured in operative relation with each other to form a completefurnace, the size of which may be varied by increasing or decreasing thenumber of sections, each section forming a water leg with communicatingopenings near its top and bottom so arranged that when two sections arebolted together, the two said sections will be in communication witheach other through said opening, the said sections being arranged so asto form the fire box and combustion chamber when secured together.

This invention more particularly relatesto an improved section forboilers such as illustrated and described in my patents Number 1,208,044issued October 31, 19161 and Number 1,278,379 issued September 10, 1916.The sectional members of these patcuts, and all other previous patentsthat I am aware of, have been joined together and placed incommunication with each other by joints that have had to be machined orotherwise expensively connected together.

Furthermore, I have found considerable difficulty in joining thatportion of the edges of the sections which go to form the fire box andcombustion chambers.

It is, therefore, the object of my invention to provide a boiler sectionso shaped and constructed that it may be formed of a single piece ofcast metal having members so arranged that joints between the watercommunicating openings may be formed without expensive machinery, andalso the joints between the fire box portion of the sections;

A further object is to provide an improved method for constructing acommunicating passageway between adjacent sections of boilers wherebysteam and water tight joints may be maintained, and whereby the cost ofmanufacture is materially reduced.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combinationof the various parts oi the device, whereby the objects con templatedare attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in myclaim,

1922. Serial No. 580,872.

and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of one of the sections of such a heater asabove described.

Figure2 is a side elevation of a number of the sections placed together,in operative relation with each other, the front and back wall of thefurnace being omitted, which forms no part of my present invention.

Figure 3' is a vertical, detail, sectional view taken on the line 3-43of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a detail sectional view taken on the line 47-4 of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a detail sectional view taken on. the line 5.5 of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is a detail sectional View taken on the 1 ine 66 of Figure 2.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, I have used the, referencenumeral 10 to indicate generally a single section of my improved heater.Each of these sections comprises. hollow and. parallel leg members 11,the upper ends of which are connected by a head member 12, the said legmembers being connected intermediate their ends by a hollow cross member13. This member 13, as shown in section in Figure 5, comprises a topface member 14 which is provided with a U-shaped portion 15 in crosssection formed integral therewith to form an opening 16, the width ofthe member 15 being less than the width of the member 14 so that agreater surface will be brought in contact with the heat from the firebox. The width of the members 1.4 is equal to the width of the legs 11,and they are flat on their top surface so that when a number of thesections are joined together, as illustrated in Figure 2, acomparatively tight floor will be formed thereby above the members 15.The legs 10, as shown in cross section in Figure 6, are constructedsimilar to the members 15, with the exception that the tubular members17 are each provided with a face plate 118 which is formed on theoutside of the said tube 17 and each of said plates being provided witha laterally projecting portion 19 and 20, the projection or, flange 19being in line with the plate 18, while the flange 20 is inclinedinwardly so that when the two sections are joined together the flange 19will overlap the flange 20, and so arranged that the openings or grooves21 will be provided. between. the end of the lie flange 20, and theinner face of the flange 18.

When the sections are assembled, the openings 21 are filled withasbestos or other heatresisting cement, and the entire face of the plate18 is plastered with cement, the grooves 21serving to help hold theplaster in position as well as to hold the packing on the joint, thesaid packing and the plaster being united together.

It will be seen that when said sections are bolted together the cementmay be securely held in place and cannot work loose by temperaturechanges.

The top ends of the legs 11 are connected by the head portion 12, whichis clearly shown in section in Figure 3. The lower portion of each ofthe heads is of a width equal to the full width of the legs 11, whileits lower portion provided with a down wardly extending portion 22 whichis for the same purpose as the members 15 and 17, before referred to.

Each of the front and back plates of the heads 12 is provided with anopening 23, the opening of the frant plate being formed in an outwardlyextending conical flange 24, while the opposite head plate is providedwith an inwardly extending conical flange 25, the said flanges being soarranged that when the sections are adjacent to each other, the flange2st of one will rest in the flange 25. These flanges are cast integralin section and require no machine work.

By means of my improved method of constructing these conical flanges, Ihave materially reduced the cost of manufacture and according to myimproved method, I chill the engaging surfaces of these conical flangesduring the casting process, and this is done by inserting in the hole atthe proper places, smooth metal chills in positions where they areengaged by the moulten metal. as soon as it is poured into the mold. Inthis manner the coacting surfaces of these conical members are maderelatively smooth and hard, and after the casting has been formed nomachine work is required when they are used in connection with the softmetal washers, as hereinafter more fully described.

This chilling process is of itself old and.

terials, the washer might be formed fiat. As two sections are placedtogether, a washer is placed between the coacting flange members. As thesections and flanges are drawn together by means of bolts 27 the washerswill assume substantially the shape of the flanges, and in such a mannerthat a tight joint is formed. Thus it will be seen that any unevennessin the surface of the flanges will be taken care of by the yieldingwasher member.

The lower end of each of the legs 11 is provided with a substantiallyenlarged rectangular portion 27 of a width equal to the width of theleg. Each of the members 27 is formed hollow, and its forward and backplate each provided with an opening 28, one of the front and back platemembers having an outwardly extending conical flange, while the other ofthe front and back plate members is provided with an inwardly extendingconical flange, indicated by the numeral 29, and similar to the flanges245 and 25, and each provided with a washer similar to the washers 26.

The top face of each of the members 27 is inclined downwardly andinwardly to form a shoulder on which the fuel of the fire box rests. Theoperation and construc tion of this is similar to my previous pat ents.I have, however, provided means whereby a different grate constructionmay be employed.

The lower and inner edges of each of the members 27 are provided with aninwardly projecting lug 30 which is designed to receive one member of aset of grate bars 31.

The lower side of each of the members 27 is provided with a downwardlyextending flange 32 of a width equal to the width of the leg 11. Each ofthe members 32 is provided at one edge with an outwardly extendingflange clearly shown in Figures 1 and 1-, the outer edge of each of theflanges 33.being provided with an outwardly extending flange 34:, thesaid flange 34 extending downwardly and inwardly from the lower ed ofthe member 27, the upper edge of the flange 32 being provided with aninwardly extending lug 35 spaced a slight distance below the lower edgeof the member 27. These lugs 35 provide means on which the grate member36 may be mounted, the said grate member being of a length slightlygreater than one-half the length of the tire box. The grate 3]., or theupper one, being preferably mounted in the heel: end of the tire boxwhile the grate member 36 is mounted in the forward end of the fire box.

By this arrangement it will be seen that the forward grate members 36may be moved rearwardly beneath the grate member 31 and permit the ashesand cinders from the front end of the tire box to fall into said ash pitformed l etween the members 32 and below the said grate member, therebyproviding means whereby the cinders may be easily and quickly removedfrom the grates.

It often happens that it is desirable to do this while a small portionof the fire is still in the furnace. This may be accomplished by rakingthe coals under the back grate bar 31 before sliding the grate bar 36rearwardly, then any cinders that may be under the said fuel and on topof the grate bar 31 may be raked forwardly from beneath said coals. Or,if it is desired, the ashes may be dumped into the rear end of the ashpit by a reverse operation of the grates.

The lower ends of the legs 11 are held in engagement with each other bymeans of bolts 37 extended through suitable openings in the flanges 33.The heads 12 are provided with upwardly extending flanges 38 to receivethe bolts 27.

By forming the legs 11 hollow, a water chamber is provided therein, thelower end of which is in communication with the openings 28, the upperend of which is in communication with the chamber in the heads 12, thesaid chamber being in communication with the openings 23, the hollowportion or chamber of the members 15 being in communication with thechambers of the legs 11.

By this arrangement it will be seen that when a number of the sectionshave been secured together, all of the sections are in communicationwith each other. The said chambers may be operatively connected andplaced in communication with each of the water or steam circulatingsystems illustrated in my previous patents.

It will be seen that I have provided sections of simple, durable andinexpensive con- Struction which may be easily and quickly placed inposition relative to each other, and when so placed tight joints will beprovided between the water compartments of the various sections andbetween the flanges of the fire box and combustion chamber, the entireouter surface of the sections being plastered with heat-resisting cementwhich will close the joints between the heads 12, the plaster beingforced into the space between the flanges 33 and behind the flanges 34which will close the joints of the fire box. The flanges 34 serve toassist in holding the plaster in position.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a furnace, the combination of a series of independent detachablesections, each section being formed with an outer wall member and with ahollow fluid circulating member projected inwardly from the outer wall,one vertical edge of each outer wall member being formed with alaterally extending flange substantially parallel with the wall member,and the other edge of the wall member being formed with a flangeinclined inwardly, said parts being so arranged and proportioned thatwhen two adjacent sections are assembled the inwardly extended flange ofone section will extend beyond the inner face of the straight flange ofthe adj acent section and to a point adjacent to the inwardly extendedhollow member of said adjacent section, and whereby there will be formedbetween said straight flange and said.

inclined flange and the adjacent portion of the hollow body asubstantially triangular opening, and a cement material placed in saidopening, whereby in the event that the said cementmaterial should forany reason become loosened from the surfaces with which it is in contactit cannot drop out of the said opening in which it was formed.

2. A. section for heaters comprising upright parallel leg members spacedapart, a head member connected with the upper ends of said leg members,said head member and the upper portion of said leg member being formedhollow, the lower end of each of said leg members being provided with adownwardly projecting flange of a width equal to the width of said legmember, said downwardly projecting flange having an inwardly projectinglug to provide a rest for a grate member, each of said downwardlyprojecting flanges being also provided with a laterally extendingflange, and each of said laterally extending flanges being provided witha flange substantially parallel and opposite to the downwardlyprojecting flange.

CHARLES PHELPS.

